St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1887-03-21
SCIENTIFIC EsaEvlTEEs.
A New Kind of Giass--The French
GoVermmeuG,s Offer..Notes


The attention of all electricians is Gale d
to the fact that the French government has
offered a prize of so, 900 francs (about
S10.000) for scheme rendering the apph.
cation of electricity possible and econonii-
cal as means of heat. light, chemical &C
ton, mechanical purposes and medical
purposes. The adjudication of the prize is
left to the academy of science at Paris and
correspondence from all nations is invited
An easy and reputed effective method of
restoring faded ink on old manuscripts is
to mOjSten the paper with water and then
paint over with soft brush dipped in am
monium sulphide. Most inks contain iron
generally combined with an organic acid
which in process of time becomes decom-
posed. with consequent fading of color.
The ammonium sulphide combines with the
iron forming the black iron suIphide, caus-
ing thus the temperance of the original
characters.
A new kind of glass has been recently
perfected by Prof. Abbey and DR.. Scott
under the auspices of the Prussian govern
ment. Common glass usually contains
about six different substances, but this new
glass contains fourteen, among them the
very unusual constituents boron and phos-
phoruS, never found i'll the ordinary pro-
traordinary reflective power. and will be
used for lenses for microscopes and other
optical apparatus, with the expectation that
present available magnifying powers may
be enlarged hundredfold.
The general press has contained repeated
accounts of the remarkable case reported by
Dr. NJ. ID. LockerStein, of Chicago, in the
effects OF tro-glycerine i'll resuScitating
life. His patient was a woman who sunk
rapidly and was apparently dead. ANY
action OF the heart was imperceptible, the
temperature of the body had fallen to go
+ F., and every indication of death was pres
ent. A solution of ro-glycerine was
administered hypodermicalIy, when
there was gasp, followed by
three others within minute. Dur
ing the second minute six Inspirations
were noted, with a faint fluttering of the
heart, but no wrist-pulse was dscernible.
During third minute eighteen respirations
We're evident, and a feeble pulse. During
the fourth minute the pulse lose $50 and
above. the face was flushed. the ewes
rolled. the muscles slowly relaxed. and the
patient became comfortable. These data
are quite unique in character, and if SUBJ
substantiated by later researches by DIR.
LockerStein aud Others may lead to most
important and valuable applications of the
drug.
The Tuse Cof salicylic acid in prevent
ing fermentation of articles of food and
drink especially susceptible to this change
during storage or transportation has become
quite prevalent during late years. AS
salicylic acid and its salts tend to retard the
action of the digestive f1uids-saliva, gastric
juice and pancreatic fluid-it Is easy to see
how that they might act deleteriously on
such persons who are affected with weak
digestion or venal troubles. In fact, the
compounds have come to be viewed
with gravest suspicion, and their
use interdicted by many officials of
boards of health. The French government
has recently had this matter carefully in
vestigated through the academy of medi-
cine Their conclusions show that salicylic
acid in small doses is probably harmless,
but in larger quantities acts injuriously.
AS the acid is decomposed on standing into
other products, it is practically impossible
at present by chemical methods to deter
mine the amounts actually added origin
ally to the solution, and therefore to fix
any definite limit for safety in using. 1t
was therefore thought advisable to recon-
mend total prohibition of the salcylic acid
and its compounds for such purposes even
in small amounts.